


Hand in Hand

by bukkunkun



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Disney World & Disneyland, Friends to Lovers, Gen, Growing Up Together, Light Angst, Love Confessions, M/M, Marriage Proposal, Snippets, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Wholesome, kinda im not exactly sure how to categorise this
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-30
Updated: 2018-07-30
Packaged: 2019-06-18 19:23:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,452
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15492939
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bukkunkun/pseuds/bukkunkun
Summary: Riku has always loved Mickey Mouse as a child. Among other things, like for example, his childhood best friend.Based on art by Space Penguin on Twitter.





	Hand in Hand

**Author's Note:**

> > From kh 3 to bbs! A Riku at Didney chronicles! [#KingdomHearts](https://twitter.com/hashtag/KingdomHearts?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) [#kh3](https://twitter.com/hashtag/kh3?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) [#riku](https://twitter.com/hashtag/riku?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) [#sora](https://twitter.com/hashtag/sora?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) [#MickeyMouse](https://twitter.com/hashtag/MickeyMouse?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) [#disneyworld](https://twitter.com/hashtag/disneyworld?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) [pic.twitter.com/Z2zwn9nFLJ](https://t.co/Z2zwn9nFLJ)
>> 
>> — Space Penguin (@SpacePenguin10) [25 July 2018](https://twitter.com/SpacePenguin10/status/1021945436079366146?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw)
> 
> the art that inspired and is in this fic is linked in the embedded tweet above! ^^^ please check Space Penguin out, they're amazing!
> 
> the soriku server is beautiful fun and i have made it a Mission to write fic for the artists that contribute so amazingly to the server. thank you for the lovely crop watering, everyone. i love 
> 
> i've actually already written for at least three people in that server lmao so i do have my work cut out for me. _watch out other artists, you're next._

Two best friends in the Destiny Islands High uniform walked together hand in hand, eyes wide with wonder along familiar cobblestone streets, silver and brown hair swishing in the ocean breeze. The shorter of the two—a young woman with brown hair—chewed thoughtfully on her churro as her best friend consulted a map she had long-memorised, and leaned on her side with a soft sigh.

“Celeste, why do you even bother looking at that?” She whined, “You know this place like the back of your hand.”

Celeste rolled her eyes, and swept her long silver hair over her shoulder. “If I don’t, it’ll be _you_ that gets lost, airhead.” She poked her friend in the middle of her forehead, and the brunette girl blew her a raspberry. Celeste giggled, and shook her head. “Oh, _real mature_ , Sol.”

Sol simply grinned, and elbowed her best friend. “You know, you love Disneyland so much. Mickey, especially.”

Celeste giggled. “Does that make me look childish?”

Sol shook her head vigorously. “Not at all! If anything, it makes you seem…” she stopped for a moment, and the two girls came to a stop at the side of the cobblestone main road. Celeste cocked her head at her, and Sol grinned at her. “I dunno, more human? You’re always so cool and collected, so I just…” She rubbed her arm, and shrugged. “It’s nice to be reminded you’re not a robot.”

Celeste laughed at that, and bumped their hips together. “The hell does _that_ mean?” Sol burst into giggles, and they began walking again.

“I dunno.” She replied. “But you know, I bet this is hereditary.” Celeste huffed at that, and Sol grinned widely again. “I mean it! I bet when you have kids, they’re gonna _love_ Disneyland, too.” She held up the photographs she was holding, and nudged the silver-haired girl.

The two girls looked down at them, and Celeste couldn’t help but smile at their photo standing next to the Mickey Mouse mascot.

“You know what?” She said, gently touching Mickey’s face through the protective plastic that held the photos, “I think… you’re absolutely right.”

* * *

It was Riku’s fifth birthday, and as agreed with his mother, he and Sora’s family went to Disneyland. As usual, his father wasn’t around, but at this point, he had grown used to it. Right now, all he cared about was going somewhere _new,_ and holding Sora’s hand in one hand and his mother’s in the other, Riku’s eyes sparkled in wonder at the sight of streets straight out his fairytale books. It was like he stepped right into a storybook, and he looked up at his mother with wide, awestruck eyes.

“Mom…” He began, and she smiled at him, patting his head gently.

“This is Mom’s favourite place in the world.” She said softly, kneeling down next to him, and he nodded vigorously, unmindful of Sora complaining that he was hungry, and wanted to try the sweet-smelling food in the red cart just ahead of them. “I hope, sweetie, you’ll love it just as much as I do.”

“I think I already do.” Riku breathed, and Celeste laughed softly.

“You haven’t seen _everything_ yet.” She said, and finally followed after Sol and Sora, Riku in tow, to buy themselves their own set of churros.

Sora was just as thrilled as Riku was to come there, wide-eyed and excited, and together, they practically dragged their mothers along from ride to ride. Celeste made sure none of them would get lost, but she couldn’t help but smile when she saw Riku poring over the park map they had, concentrating hard on memorising the whole place.

“Don’t worry,” she said, patting his head, and he looked up at her. “We’ll come over as much as you like, and you can learn the place along the way.”

Riku beamed up at her, and nodded.

* * *

“Okay, Sora! Smile!”

Sol knew it was coming, it was inevitable, especially since she had Celeste with her, but she couldn’t quite keep herself from laughing as she watched Sora burst into tears when the Mickey Mouse mascot came to stand next to him. Her hands were shaking, and her camera was jittery and shaky. She knew there was _no way_ she would be able to take a photo of him like that, so when Celeste came over, shaking her head exasperatedly, she gave her best friend the camera and a thankful pat on her shoulder before stumbling back to Riku.

“It’s weird, isn’t it,” she said fondly, sitting down heavily next to the little boy on a bench that also held all their things. “I mean, if you think about it, that mascot’s low-key terrifying…” she stopped herself when she felt Riku practically _vibrating_ next to her. Cocking her head, Sol looked down at her son’s best friend, and she almost burst into laughter again when she saw his face.

He looked like he was having a hard time holding his excitement in—his little round cheeks were flushed, and his small hands were balled into vibrating fists on his knees. Giggling, Sol patted the boy’s head, and jerked her head at the Mickey mascot trying to inch closer to Sora, but the boy kept crying. A park staff member was already there trying to help, and as usual, Celeste kept cool and calm, her hands remaining unswaying even as she held up Sol’s camera.

“You excited to see Mickey?” Sol asked Riku, and the boy nodded sheepishly. She laughed softly at that, and ruffled his hair, earning her a small laugh. “Man, I _really_ don’t know what you and Celeste see in that mascot…” She looked back at the mouse, and somehow, Celeste had finally managed to take a photo of Sora sniffling quietly, holding an ice cream in one hand, and Mickey’s in the other.

The mascot had the same smile it always wore on its face, and its beady little eyes looked right into Sol’s camera.

The brunette woman tried not to shiver. “It’s creepy, the hell…”

Eventually Sora was done taking his photo, and he immediately darted for his mother, clinging to her when she knelt down to hold him. She picked him up, chuckling softly, and much to her surprise, Riku wasn’t even looking at them—not even the slightest bit concerned for his best friend. Normally he would be all over Sora, as was his wont to do, but right now, all Riku could see was Mickey, like as if his vision had tunneled because he was _next._

“Auntie Sol,” he began, but the brunette gently pushed him onwards. There was little prompting after that, and Riku immediately darted off to meet Mickey.

He screeched to a halt in front of the mascot, and looked up, his lip worried between his little teeth. His mother smiled at him, and gestured for him to stand next to Mickey.

Stiffly, the boy stood next to the mascot, and Mickey held his hand out for him to take.

Riku didn’t move. Celeste chuckled as Mickey knelt down.

Quickly, she hurried back to take a photograph, and when she was done, she flashed Mickey a thumbs-up.

“Hey, Celeste,” Sol said, holding her hand out for her best friend, “I’ll go take a picture. I know you want one too.”

Celeste positively _beamed,_ and she picked up her son, letting Mickey wrap his arm around her shoulder as they posed for a photo.

It was hard to take it with Sora in one arm and the camera in her other hand, but Sol managed, smiling softly to herself as she watched Celeste talk to Mickey.

“See,” she murmured, stroking Sora’s hair soothingly. “It’s genetic. I told her so.”

Celeste held Riku up to look Mickey in the eye, smiling brightly.

“Go on, Riku,” she said, “Say thank you to Mickey before we go.”

“I…” The little boy gingerly squeezed Mickey’s finger in his small hand, and swallowed nervously.

“It’s okay. Go on.” Celeste encouraged.

“I-I love you, Mickey Mouse!”

This time, Sol couldn’t stop herself from laughing, and Sora began crying again.

* * *

The year Riku entered junior high school saw them at Disneyland for the fifth time, and by then Riku had the place memorised. Sora lagged beside him, dragging his feet and upset at the fact he would be away from Riku for a whole year before they were together again. Beside Sora, Kairi walked idly with her nose in a crepe, humming softly.

“You know,” Sora said, for the third time that day, “This—”

“Sucks. Riku’s leaving for junior high, and we get stuck in middle school.” Riku continued. Sora pouted at him, only for Kairi to continue his train of thought.

“And, like, it isn’t fair.” She drawled, “How come he gets to go off without us for a year?”

Sora looked at the both of them witheringly as the two teens burst out laughing, high-fiving each other with their free hands.

“You guys suck.” Sora sighed, and Kairi laughed, looping her arm around his as Riku bumped their shoulders. “But seriously, I’m gonna miss you, Riku. That’s a whole year!”

“Geez, we still see each other over the weekends, and stuff.” Riku ruffled Sora’s hair, and Kairi cuddled Sora viciously. “And we’re _neighbours,_ Sora. It’ll be hard to miss me!”

“It’s not the _saaame!_ ” Sora whined, and the other two with him burst into laughter again. He crossed his arms petulantly, and Riku shook his head fondly.

“Listen—” he began, but his eyes widened when he realised a crowd of people were surging towards them. He jolted, and pulled Sora and Kairi close to himself to keep them out of harm’s way, and the three of them ended up toppling over a bench on the side of the main road. The three of them let out shouts of protest, but Riku was quick to get up and assess the damage.

“Stupid tourists,” Kairi scowled, also getting up to glower at the large group that nearly ran them over. “God, I wanna give ‘em a piece of my mind! Like what Lilo did!”

“Yeah!” Sora agreed, and the three of them untangled themselves from each other. “That’s so annoying, jeez…” He shook his head, and looked at Riku. His eyes widened, and he pointed at a large pink spot in the middle of Riku’s shirt. “Oh, no! Kairi!”

Kairi jumped, and she looked at her crepe—now conspicuously missing the large dollop of strawberry ice cream on top of it, and now it decorated the front of Riku’s shirt. She gasped, gingerly reaching out for the stain, and she bit her lip.

“Oh, man…” She deflated, “Riku, I’m so sorry.”

“Nah, it’s fine.” Riku shook his head, looking down at the ice cream stain on his shirt. “You two are coming over to explain the whole thing to my mom, though.”

“Yeah.” Kairi winced, and Sora deflated, sighing deeply.

“Let’s get Riku a new shirt.” He said, getting up, and Kairi made a move to follow him, when he shook his head. “Stay here, I’ll go get something.” His face was struggling to stay straight, and Riku shot him a suspicious look before he darted away into one of the gift shops on the main street. Riku and Kairi shared a look, but the two of them settled down on the bench, trying to get rid of the ice cream as best as they could.

Two wads of tissue and three sheets of wet wipes later, Sora came back, grinning widely as he held up a paper bag from the gift shop.

“This blew through my savings, but I got you a lil’ something!” Sora beamed, and Riku got up, alarmed.

“Sora, you didn’t have to—”

“Eh, shut it,” Sora grinned, “You graduated. This is my gift to you.” He pulled out something white from the bag, and pressed it into Riku’s hands. “Go get changed, and let’s go see Mickey later at his house.”

Kairi gave Riku a soft smile, and Riku just _knew_ his cheeks were dark red. Mercifully, this time, Sora didn’t say anything about it, but he nodded, and headed off into the bathroom.

He unwrapped the gift, and realised it was a shirt. He cocked his head and unfurled it—

And promptly burst out laughing.

“Sora,” he rolled his eyes, taking off his dirty shirt and replacing it with the new one, “You absolute idiot.”

He looked at himself in the mirror, and the words _‘I LOVE DIDNEY!’_ blared out at him.

He couldn’t help the wide, goofy grin that crossed his face. “ _I love it._ ”

* * *

There was a line to meet Mickey, but the three friends were patient. Kairi wouldn’t stop laughing at Riku’s shirt, up until her laughter had dissolved into loud, uncontrollable snorting, the kind that both her boys knew was one she would never, _ever_ let anyone outside their circle hear.

Still, she was trying her best not to sound like a whinnying pony, but Sora and Riku had resorted to tickling her until her face was red, and the laughter that slipped from her lips had grown silent. The three of them sobered up enough when they received strange looks from other park goers, but as they approached Mickey, Riku fell quiet.

His two best friends grinned at him.

“Hey, hey.” Sora elbowed him, hard, and Riku simply huffed at him to stop. Sora grinned wider, and Riku rolled his eyes, elbowing him back harder. Sora simply laughed, and tried not to stare too long at how red Riku’s cheeks were. “C’mon, I’ll go take your pic.” He said, and Riku huffed.

“It’s fine, we really don’t have to.” He said, trying to save face, but Kairi hummed.

“I dunno, we’ve been here five times and every single time you’ve got a picture with Mickey,” She said, “Isn’t it like, tradition at this point?” She smiled brightly at him. “Besides, you’re entering high school soon! It’ll be like a milestone picture, that kind of thing!”

“A milestone picture,” Riku echoed, deadpan, but when they stepped forward, he fell silent when he realised they were up next to meet Mickey.

“Y’all ready for this?” Sora grinned at Kairi, and the redhead laughed, shaking her head fondly. “Riku?”

“Shut up, Sora.” Riku mumbled, his cheeks growing darker, but when the people before them moved on, Mickey turned to them and beckoned them over.

There was no hiding the big, goofy grin that spread across Riku’s face, nor the way his eyes lit up and sparkled at the sight of the same old Disneyland Mickey mascot he knew and loved. Sora was chuckling good-naturedly as Riku was the first to stand next to Mickey. The mascot put an arm around Riku’s shoulders, and yet Riku stiffly didn’t scoot any closer.

They’d done this a thousand times, and yet Sora couldn’t quite ever get tired of it. He lifted Kairi’s camera to look through the viewfinder, and Riku shuffled closer to Mickey, sheepish and yet so poorly hiding his excitement.

It was really endearing, Sora thought. He was going to miss this.

He paused. He was going to miss this?

“Hey, Riku! You suck!” Kairi threw at him over Sora’s shoulder. “We’ve been doing this so many times already, you should know how to pose by now, or I’m gonna drag someone else into my modelling career the moment I hit high school!”

“Like they’ll hire a tomboy like you!” Riku stuck his tongue out at her, and Kairi howled with laughter.

“Oh, I’m gonna make you eat your words, jerk!” She shot back, and Sora laughed.

“C’mon, Riku.” He said, and the words tumbled out of his mouth so easily. “You’ve done this so many times, Mickey’s practically your boyfriend or something!”

“What!” Riku blurted out, his face beet red, and Sora couldn’t resist taking a photograph. “Sora! You better delete that!”

“No way.” Sora laughed softly, shaking his head. “C’mon. Do it properly, or I’m gonna make Kairi steal your solo pic.”

Riku straightened up, still blushing, and Sora took his photo. He looked at Kairi, and she shrugged, jogging over to Riku’s side to cheerfully pose next to Mickey in a more relaxed position, a hand on her hip and a peace sign in front of her left eye. Mickey gave a peace sign too, and Riku meekly held one up, and Sora chuckled.

_God, they looked ridiculous._

“I love my friends,” he murmured, and took a photograph.

His pretty, fiery best friend, the horrifying mouse mascot that shouldn’t have those eyebrows, and the boy he was going to miss the most for a long, long year.

“Sora, want a pic?” Kairi asked, and Sora shrugged, taking Kairi’s place next to Mickey as he handed her the camera. The brunet looked up at Mickey, and laughed softly.

“God, you really are low-key creepy.” He said, but he laughed when Mickey ruffled his hair in retaliation. Riku laughed brightly too, and Sora found himself paying more attention to that than the photo Kairi was taking.

He tuned out her complaining that Sora was way out of focus in every single one of her shots, but as she, Sora and Riku walked along the main street to find a good spot for the parade, Sora was content to watch as Riku slowly came down from his high, the red flush on his face disappearing first from his ears and then his cheeks.

It was nearing dusk, the sun setting in the horizon beyond them, setting Riku’s silver hair aglow, and Sora felt something clenching in his chest.

“Hey,” Riku laughed, poking his nose. “Anything on my face?” He asked, and Sora huffed, shaking his head. Immediately, Riku sobered up, and leaned on Sora’s side reassuringly. “What’s up, Sora?” He asked, and Sora hummed.

“What d’you mean?” He asked, and Riku rolled his eyes, ruffling Sora’s hair. Sora laughed brightly at that, but then Riku turned his head to look at him, and he immediately sobered up.

He hadn’t realised how much brighter Riku’s eyes seemed in the shadow of dusk.

“Something’s bothering you.” He said, and of course he would notice. Sora deflated, laughing fondly, as he pulled his head away from Riku’s grip, and Riku let him. He leaned against Riku’s side, and sighed. “Sora, c’mon. You know you can’t hide anything from me.”

Oh, he knew. Intimately.

“I’m gonna miss you.” He said quietly, and Riku fell quiet, too. “I know we see each other every day, but I just…”

He really didn’t know what to say—he didn’t know what he didn’t like about the whole thing.

Was he scared of being left behind? Of Riku suddenly so far away he would be a different person?

Was he scared of change?

Was he scared of losing Riku?

“It’s only a year.” Riku chuckled, giving Sora a light noogie. “We’ll be back together before you know it.”

“A year.” Sora nodded, and Kairi finally came back with their snacks. As Riku greeted her, helping her sort their food out, he looked out at the empty street, ready for the parade that would soon fill it with life.

Only a year, he said.

But so many things could happen in a single year.

* * *

“Man, who’d have thought, huh.” Riku said quietly, as the three of them sat together on the small paopu tree islet on their childhood play island, when Kairi had stopped crying. The two younger teens looked at him, as he shuffled close to them to sit on the trunk next to them, and Kairi untangled herself from Sora to hug Riku instead.

“I don’t wanna move away.” Kairi’s voice quivered, and though she had said it so many times, this time, neither of the boys wanted to continue the thought for her.

The year following Riku’s entry into high school held nothing too difficult for them, and soon, Sora and Kairi were there with him again for the rest of high school, sharing in each other’s joy. Sora, Riku and Kairi continued living their halcyon lives on their sunny, sunny home, with the familiarity of Destiny Islands’ Disneyland as the backdrop of their youth, until another milestone came rearing its head towards them.

Kairi’s stepfather’s term as mayor had ended recently, having served two peaceful, progressive terms, but it was time for them to say goodbye. Kairi’s mother wanted to go back to where she came from, Radiant Garden, further inward into the mainland, and that meant Kairi had to move away with them.

“ _I don’t wanna leave you two, I don’t wanna._ ” That was the second half of her sentence, not any more eroded than the last time she said it, and Sora and Riku’s hearts ached for her.

Sora leaned on her comfortingly, and Riku hugged her just that little bit tighter.

“I’m going to miss you.” Kairi whispered. “The both of you.”

Riku looked down at her, and at Sora, their heartbroken expressions crumbling his heart to ash, and he bit his lip.

Right now, they were counting on him. He was the eldest of the three of them, damn it—he had to _do something._ He had to be the reasonable one of the three of them. They weren’t as matured as he was, so he had to take the initiative.

“Yeah,” he replied, and kissed Kairi’s hair. “It’ll be sad to see you go.”

Kairi squeezed him a little, but he pressed on.

“But there’s really nothing we can do about that.” He pulled her away from him, and gently wiped away her tears with his thumb. He gave her a crumbling smile, and cupped her cheek in his hand. “So for now, let’s do what we can.”

“Riku’s right.” Sora sniffled, and the two of them looked at him. “What we _can_ do right now… is make the most of the time we do have together.”

Riku looked at Sora, and Sora smiled back up at him, rubbing his nose. “Sounded pretty cool there, huh!”

The older teen huffed fondly, and shook his head. “Well, let’s all go on another hangout.” He gently pried Kairi off himself, and jumped down onto the ground. The two blinked at him owlishly, and Riku couldn’t help the smile that crossed his face. “To the place we all always go to cheer ourselves up.”

Kairi and Sora lit up, and Riku could breathe easily again.

“Let’s go to Disneyland, guys.” He said, holding his hand out to them. “We’ll go together. One more time.”

* * *

He wanted to say they were too old for this, but Riku knew he wasn’t kidding anyone, especially not Sora and Kairi. Together, laughing brightly, he and Sora turned their teacups aggressively, spinning faster than anyone else on the ride.

The carousel was a thundering pack of wild horses, and they were their riders, Kairi leading the charge into the fray.

They took far more pictures than Riku could count—and he knew there were more less than flattering ones in there, but he didn’t care.

It would be the last time that they stepped foot into Disneyland as their messy trio of children, and Riku wanted to keep this memory burned in his mind as much as Sora and Kairi did. So whenever someone held their phone camera up, the other two were already flashing huge smiles or pulling silly faces in the middle of whatever it was they were doing.

Sitting together at their usual bench, Sora and Kairi leaned against Riku’s side, and sighed contentedly as they munched on their own snacks. Riku was already finished with his—a small box of churros—while Kairi was about to shove the rest of her strawberry crepe into her mouth. Sora had them all beat, now on his second treat, his own box of churros that he was slowly nibbling on after practically inhaling his chocolate crepe prior to that.

They lazily watched pack after pack of tourists walk by them, and Kairi snorted softly.

“Hey,” she began, and finally stuffed the tip of her crepe into her mouth. “We never got to piss off tourists in here, did we.” The rest of her sentence was muffled, and Riku raised an eyebrow at her as he drank from the water bottle he had.

As usual, though, Sora was the first to voice his thoughts. “We never got to flick off purists in beer?” He echoed, and Kairi choked on her crepe in the middle of a wheezing laugh.

“Water, water!” Riku stammered, handing Kairi his bottle, and the redhead chugged half of it before calming down. Riku looked at her witheringly as she snickered into her fist after that, but eventually she calmed down enough to talk again.

“I said,” she poked Sora’s forehead, “We never got to piss tourists off here.” She leaned back against the bench and Riku’s side, and sighed. “Though I guess I think we’re too old for that now. Lilo got away with it since she was a little kid.”

“True.” Riku smiled. “You’re almost 16, Kairi. Sora just turned 15. You’re _responsible adults_ now.”

“Shut up.” Kairi elbowed him, and he laughed pleasantly. “Mister Almost-Going-To-College. You’re not exactly the youngest here.”

“That’s me!” Sora grinned, but quickly he sobered up. “Man, Riku’s going to college soon, too…” He deflated, “I’ll be stuck here, all alone…”

Kairi and Riku looked at each other, and frowned slightly.

“Hey,” Kairi began, and Sora looked at her. “We should get a little something for all three of us.” The two boys looked at her, and she grinned. “So we always have a part of each other to hold on to, always.”

She got up, and drew a star in the air with a dainty finger.

“Like those wayfinders! They’ll be our lucky charms.” She grinned, and Riku blinked at her. “What, thought only you and Sora could say cool things?” She laughed, and Riku shook his head fondly.

“Well,” Riku smiled, and held Sora’s hand. The brunet jolted slightly, but Riku didn’t know why. Still, he held on, and squeezed it. “And I still have to pay you back for that shirt you bought me a while back.”

“Are we getting matching shirts?” Kairi lit up, and Sora’s face broke out into a grin.

“Can we?” He asked giddily, and Riku laughed fondly.

“Fine,” He said, “We can throw in some ears, too.”

Sora and Kairi let out twin cheers, and Riku couldn’t help the smile that he couldn’t get rid from his face.

Sora and Kairi were growing up, and it felt bittersweet to see them like that.

Perhaps it really was time to start moving on.

* * *

Riku tugged on his headband, laughing softly. The gift shop had run out of Mickey ear headbands his size, so he settled for a Minnie one to match with Kairi’s Minnie headband. Sora’s headband was barely visible beyond his mop of hair, but Riku could definitely make out the classic Mickey ears poking out from between Sora’s unruly spikes. The three of them walked around with matching white shirts that spelled _‘I ♥️ MICKEY’_ sandwiching a Mickey symbol in the middle on top of their school uniform bottoms, and Kairi’s shirt had her sleeves rolled up.

“God, we must look _so stupid_ right now.” Kairi laughed, and Sora snickered.

“I love it.” He said, and looked at Riku. “What’s the weather up there, Minnie?”

“Pleasant.” Riku deadpanned, but he was smiling. “Least I can breathe up here, hope you’re not choking down there, Mickey.”

Sora laughed, and blew him a raspberry. “Harsh. I bet you’d never actually say _that_ to actual Mickey.”

“Oh, really.” Riku rolled his eyes, and wrapped his arm around Sora’s waist. “Oh, Mickey, I’ve loved you for so long! I’ve loved you since I was little, and I’ll never stop loving you!” Dramatically, he dipped Sora to the sound of Kairi’s laughter. “Make me your Minnie Mouse, Mister Michael James Mouse!”

Sora blinked up at him wide-eyed for a beat longer than Riku expected, and the older teen hesitated.

“Sora?” He asked softly, but Sora quickly recovered from his stupor to pull himself up and wrap his arms around the back of Riku’s neck.

“Oh, Minnie! I’ll always love you!” He made kissy faces after that, and it was relief that punched Riku’s laughter out of his chest.

“Oh, my god.” Kairi buried her face in her hands, “You guys are the biggest idiots I’ve ever met.”

The two boys untangled themselves from each other, and Riku grinned at her. “You’re just jealous.”

He missed the way Sora his a strange smile behind his hand, but definitely caught Sora trying to hold his hand again. Smiling, he met Sora halfway and laced their fingers together, and he couldn’t help the odd fluttering feeling that bubbles up in his chest.

He was probably just hungry. This didn’t mean anything.

Sora stole a glance at him, and his cheeks felt warm.

Not a thing, he thought, but the smile Sora wore mirrored the one he wore as they walked together down Main Street.

* * *

“You’d better make it cute,” Kairi peered through her viewfinder at Sora and Donald, and the boy gave her a wide grin, flexing his arms. Donald hopped on his feet, nodding and then did the same, and Kairi couldn’t help but giggle as she took a photo of them both. “Oh, my god. That’s adorable. I’m _definitely_ printing these out.”

“You’re making three copies each!” Sora said, and then turned to hug Donald. “Thanks, Donald! I’ll see you around, bud!”

Donald gave him a salute, and then waved at the three of them enthusiastically as they strode away. Kairi couldn’t stop smiling at all the pictures they took—Goofy tugging lightly on Kairi’s Minnie ears, Sora and Daisy with their chins on their hands, Riku pretending to have a tough time lifting Pluto. There was another photo of Kairi with Minnie mid-twirl of their skirts, and then another one with the both of them smiling, their fingers poking cutely at their cheeks, and Kairi still wasn’t sure which of the two were going to be printed.

“Now, we’re just missing Mickey.” She huffed, and Sora grinned.

“That’s Riku’s territory,” He said, crossing his arms. “Wouldn’t wanna get in the way of _that_.”

Riku snorted. “Oh, cut it out.” He rolled his eyes, but ruffled Sora’s hair. “Listen, I may like Mickey a whole lot, but that doesn’t mean he’s the number _one_ in my life.”

Kairi was snickering as he said that, but Sora hadn’t said a word after he did, and Riku paused.

“Sora?” He asked, and Sora suddenly flashed him a grin.

“Mm, your bedroom tells me something else, man.” He snickered, and Riku’s cheeks flared red.

“Says the guy who’s got his room full with Winnie the Pooh plush toys!”

“At least I don’t freak out when I see him!” Sora shot back, and Kairi quickly squeezed herself between them.

“I can’t believe of all the things to bicker about, you two choose Disney franchises you obsess over.” She rolled her eyes, and the boys grinned at her.

“You’re one to talk.” Riku crossed his arms, and her cheeks went pink.

“Otaku.” Sora grinned, and Kairi squealed, smacking him in the arm. Sora burst out giggling, and Riku dove forward to ruffle both Sora and Kairi’s hair.

He was definitely going to miss this, he thought, with no small amount of remorse after the three of them pulled apart, panting and grinning.

“C’mon,” he said, ignoring the way Kairi spluttered at him for ruining her hair, “Let’s go look for Mickey.”

When he reached out for Sora to take his hand, he hesitated for a moment. Much to his surprise, Sora met him halfway, and for that brief moment as Sora laced their fingers together, Riku understood.

There was _something_ there, and he could feel it settling in his chest like a cat, purring contentedly as it wrapped its tail around itself, and settled down for the long run.

It sounded like forever, and Riku was content to let it stay, warming itself in the sun until a flower grew and bloomed at the spot where Sora’s sun touched his heart.

* * *

“Okay, now make it _cool!_ ” Kairi grinned, waving at Riku to stand closer to Mickey, and still, there was that sparkle of wonder in his eye that never left ever since she met him. She smiled fondly and watched as Sora and Riku bickered on what position Riku should take, when Mickey crossed his arms, and stood back-to-back with Riku. Riku lit up at that, and he hugged Mickey one-armed.

“That’s a great idea!” he cheered, and Sora pouted.

“That’s what I’ve been telling you to do since the beginning!” He protested, and Riku laughed, shaking his head. “See, I _knew_ Mickey was number one in your heart all the time!”

Riku elbowed him, and Kairi peered at the line that they were holding up.

“Boys,” she said, “Get a move on, there are people waiting to take a pic with Mickey too.”

Riku and Sora jolted apart, and the two boys nodded sheepishly at the small family that was up next. Sora looked up at Riku’s head, and hummed.

“You and Mickey gotta match,” he said, and before Riku could protest, he pulled off Riku’s Minnie headband and switched it with his own Mickey headband.

“Hey, this isn’t gonna fit,” Riku began, but Sora shook his head, patting Riku’s arm as he hurried back to Kairi’s side. “Sora!”

“C’mon, Riku!” Kairi chimed, and Riku sighed exasperatedly, shaking his head before posing next to Mickey, also with his arms crossed.

He had to admit, he’d always wanted to do this, with Mickey, and now there he was. He couldn’t be happier.

Well, there was the looming fact that Kairi was about to leave, and he would soon leave Sora alone in senior high school, but right now, Riku was doing his best to live in the moment.

And what a moment it was—posing with Mickey as Kairi took their photo. When she gave them a thumbs-up, Riku parted from Mickey, and the mascot pulled him into a warm hug. Riku hugged him back, squeezing just a little bit tighter, and when he pulled away, Mickey wiped at his face with his glove.

“Oh,” Riku breathed, “I hadn’t… realised.”

Mickey gave him a thumbs-up, and ushered him onwards back to his friends. Together, they strode away from Mickey’s photo spot, and he tuned out Kairi and Sora’s excited chatter about that evening’s parade.

He didn’t know where that tear came out from. What was he even _sad_ about?

“Oh, Riku?” Sora asked, and he snapped out of his reverie. His focus came back, and he realised that Kairi was gone—presumably, to get their usual snacks, leaving him and Sora standing together at their usual spot when the parade came by.

“Huh?”

“Here, your Minnie headband.” Sora held out the headband to give back to him, and as if on cue, Riku heard something _snap_.

Wincing, he reached up, and when he pulled Sora’s Mickey headband off, one half hung limply from the side.

Sora whistled, as Riku frowned. “Wow. Now _that’s_ big head energy.”

“The hell does that mean?” Riku huffed, and gingerly he held the headband in his hands. “Damn, I’m sorry I broke it.”

“Bridge under water.” Sora waved it off, smiling as he put Riku’s Minnie headband back on the taller teen’s head, and Riku couldn’t help but smile again.

Oh, Sora always made him feel better, didn’t he?

“Water under the bridge,” he corrected him, punching his arm lightly, and Sora laughed. “But really, I’m sorry I broke it. I’ll make it up to you, promise.”

“I know you will.” Sora replied, leaning against the guard railing separating them from Main Street with a sigh. “Man, you’re already supposed to be going to cram school for college, too. This is gonna _suck._ ”

“You know, you’re gonna end up doing the same thing.” Riku chuckled, leaning on the rail beside him, and Sora pulled a face. “Though I don’t know if I’ll still go to cram school. I seem to be doing pretty well on my own, anyway.”

“Shut up,” Sora groaned, “I get it, you can stand studying for more than an hour a day at home.” He looked up at Riku’s Minnie ears, and pouted. “Is it the Mickey Effect? Is Mickey making you study harder than you’re supposed to?”

“What do you mean _than I’m supposed to?_ ” Riku rolled his eyes. “Jeez, Sora. Just pick up where you slack off, I know you can do it too. You’re not stupid.”

Sora’s gaze on him softened, and Riku couldn’t help the blush that spread across his cheeks.

“Thanks, Riku.” He said softly, and turned away from him again. “But you’re right. Someday I’ll be heading off to college too, I think.”

“You think?” Riku echoed, and Sora shrugged.

“Haven’t decided on it yet.” He replied, “I can think of a hundred stuff I could do without college, but a hundred more with it.”

Riku huffed, and bumped their shoulders together. “Well, whatever you choose, I know you’ll be able to make do just fine.” Sora huffed, and hid his face behind his hand. “You just gotta graduate first. Can’t exactly buy you a new Mickey headband if we don’t have a reason to come here. I’m a man who keeps his promises.”

Sora snickered at that. “You can keep it when I graduate.” Sora grinned, “And _then_ we’ll be even.” He held his pinky up to Riku, and the older teen’s smile widened. He nodded, and linked their pinkies together.

“Yeah, that’s a promise.” He said, “We’ll have you in that gakuran whether you like it or not.”

“You gonna get my button, _senpai?_ ” Sora snickered, and Riku sobered up at that quickly.

“You know what,” Riku said quietly, and Sora’s smile disappeared from his face. He cocked his head, bringing it closer to him in worry, and Riku smiled gently. “I think I would.”

Sora’s cheeks immediately turned bright red, and for a moment, the air around them went think. Sora deflated, and his hand fell to the guardrail again, squeezing nervously.

“I don’t wanna misunderstand.” He said, not looking at Riku. “Riku, I’m, uh… I’m serious.”

“Me too.” Riku said, and put his hand over Sora’s, making the brunet jump. “You can feel it too, right? There’s… something.”

“Something.” Sora echoed, and finally met Riku’s eye. “There’s something there.”

“Yeah.” He nodded, and stepped closer to Sora. “And I don’t know what it is.”

“Do you hate it?”

Riku looked down at their hands, and smiled.

“No.” He replied, “In fact, this feels… right.”

Sora finally smiled. “More right than you posing with Mickey a bit earlier?”

“Dunno,” Riku grinned, “It’s definitely up there, though.”

Sora laughed, a beautiful, ringing sound that was music to Riku’s ears, and he knew whatever that _something_ was—it was here to _stay._ Riku knew Sora knew what he meant, they were transparent to each other, their hearts laid bare only for each other’s eyes in cages of glittering, crystal clear glass, and he knew Sora could read him as well as Riku could.

“I don’t know what this is.” Sora confessed, leaning against Riku’s side with a sigh. “But it’s definitely different.”

“Yeah.” RIku nodded, and let him stay there. “We have a whole year for us to figure it out.”

“A year.” Sora echoed, smiling.

Only a year, he said.

But so many things could happen in a single year, and he couldn’t help but look forward to it.

* * *

And they _were_ back, a year later, heading to Disneyland an hour after Sora’s graduation. Riku took a day off from college to attend with his mother, and Kairi had flown in from the mainland, too, having graduated herself, and it all felt like a reunion they all sorely missed.

In the end, Riku had decided to stay in Destiny Islands, taking up marine biology while Sora finished off his last year in high school. They hung out much as possible, rowing out to their childhood play island or hanging out at the local strip mall, catching up with each other as much as possible.

And all the while, cautiously tiptoeing around the eggshells left by their conversation the last time they were at Disneyland.

Neither Sora nor Riku breached the topic, but the both of them continued living their lives, comfortable with the odd charge each brush of their skin against each other brought. Suddenly simply sitting together, shoulder to shoulder, was a moment more memorable than the last, and when their fingers laced together as they held hands, nothing felt more right in the world.

He tried not to think about how Sora hadn’t done anything with his gakuran button—though, like _he_ was one to talk, unable to take off the button after his own graduation when Celeste wanted to have it framed. Still, the button never left his mind, but he had pushed it to the back, at least.

He couldn’t be spacing out right now—today was Sora’s day, and he wasn’t about to go and ruin it.

Now, with Sora out of his gakuran and into a Mickey-patterned shirt, Riku stood hand in hand with Sora in front of a shelf full of headbands, smiling softly to himself.

“I told you I’d get you one again.” He said fondly, picking a headband up, and Sora laughed, getting one in RIku’s size, too.

“Yeah, you did.” He said, and put the headband on Riku’s head. Riku frowned at him, and Sora beamed. “But you needed one too, right?” He winked at him, “So yeah, we’re even, and we match, too!”

Riku rolled his eyes, and outside, Kairi threw in a cheeky, “Get a room!”

Sora blew her a raspberry, snickering, and he peered at Riku’s shirt, snickering.

“I like your shirt.” He commented, and Riku laughed, looking down at the shirt Kairi had given him as a present when she came back from the mainland. It was a plain white shirt that had ‘ _STAN MICKEY_ ’ surrounding a Mickey symbol. He didn’t quite understand it, but Sora and Kairi had a good laugh about it, so he assumed it meant something well.

“I still don’t get it, you know.” He replied, and Sora rolled his eyes.

“I already told you, a stan’s basically a huge fan of something.” He explained, “Kairi sent us a message in our group chat, remember? She saw it in a thrift shop and immediately thought of you.”

“I mean, I don’t get why it’s called stan.” Riku pressed, as he and Sora paid for the headbands, and Sora shook his head, sighing exasperatedly.

“Oh, whatever. Basically it just means you think Mickey’s your boyfriend, or whatever.”

“Is he really, though?” Riku replied, and Sora fell quiet.

Riku peered at his face, and he realised Sora’s cheeks were red.

“We still haven’t talked about… _that,_ huh.” He muttered, and Riku felt his own cheeks grow hot, too.

“Yeah.” He nodded, but he peered at Kairi and their mothers outside. “But we’d better get going. We can’t keep them waiting for long.”

“Oh, right.” Sora nodded, and the both of them headed outside where Kairi was watching Sol and Celeste chatting with her mother across them on Main Street. “Hey, Kairi!”

She beamed at them, and squeezed Sora’s cheeks.

“Oh, man.” She sighed, as Sora laughed brightly. “You’re a big boy now. I’m so proud of you.”

“Yuck,” Sora stuck his tongue out at her, “You sound like my mom.”

She blew him a raspberry, too, and then the two of them dissolved into laughter when Riku pressed his hand on their heads. He shook their heads affectionately, grinning.

“You kids are growing up,” he huffed, “I’m so proud of you.”

“Thanks, Dad!” Kairi giggled, punching him lightly in the side, and Sora elbowed him in the side, too.

“C’mon,” He slung his arms over Riku’s and Kairi’s shoulders. “We haven’t hung out like this in a _year._ We’re gonna spend the whole dang day here, I swear!”

“Yeah.” Riku and Kairi nodded, and together, the three of them walked onward, their mothers tailing after them more sedately.

* * *

“Oh, hey! It’s Mickey!” Kairi lit up, pointing at the mascot standing near the entrance leading to the road to Cinderella’s castle. Riku immediately lit up, and Kairi quickly dragged her friends towards the mascot, Sora’s laughter ringing brightly in the street as they moved towards him. “Mickey, Mickey!”

The mascot looked at them, and gave them a pleasant wave as the three crowded him delightedly.

“Oh, man! I’ve missed you!” Kairi sighed, hugging the mascot, and Sora followed her example.

“Me too! I haven’t seen you in ages!” Mickey hugged them back, and Riku hung back, still brimming with joy. Sora and Kairi untangled themselves from the mascot, and Riku quickly swooped in after them, hugging Mickey tightly.

“There he is, the biggest Mickey stan.” Kairi rolled her eyes, chuckling fondly, just as their mothers caught up to them.

“Oh, a photo! Let’s take a photo!” Celeste smiled brightly, and nodding enthusiastically, Kairi handed her her smartphone, before pulling Sora in close to Mickey as Riku got in place too. The four of them held up peace signs of varying degrees of excitement, with Sora holding up two—one in front of his eye, and another out at the camera. Kairi had a demure one right next to her cheek, and Riku had rested his fist on top of her head with his own peace sign. Mickey also did a peace sign out at the camera like Sora did, wrapping an arm around Sora’s waist before Celeste took a photo.

“Looking great!” Sol nodded, and the teens pulled away from Mickey.

Sora jumped, however, when Mickey began to pat his back pocket. Kairi began to howl with laughter, and Riku spluttered when Mickey did a pat-down of Sora.

“Oh, my god! Sora, stop hiding weapons already!” Kairi snorted, but much to her and Riku’s surprise, Sora’s cheeks were bright red. Kairi hesitated, and sobered up. “Sora?” She asked uneasily, and Sora sighed.

“Geez, I was planning to do it somewhere more private!” Sora poked Mickey’s nose, and the mascot mimed laughter. He rolled his eyes, and looked at his friends and family nervously. “Um, you see,” he pulled out a button from his back pocket, and Riku’s eyes widened. “I was… gonna do something about my gakuran’s button, y’know?”

Oh, god, Riku thought. _Oh,_ **_god._ **

Sora turned to Riku, smiling nervously, and he held his button out for Riku to take.

“I… I didn’t really know what to do when you answered me really honestly last year.” He said gingerly, “After all this time, I thought I was the only person between us who saw you that way, so I thought…” His cheeks grew darker, and Riku just _knew_ his own cheeks were burning. “I thought that maybe I at least owed you an answer.”

The button glinted innocuously in the sunlight.

“And this… is my answer.” Sora managed, unable to meet Riku’s eyes. “I know neither of us know what to call… _this,_ but if you were still okay with it, I want to keep going with all this.” He hesitated, and looked at Riku again. “And, uh, could you hurry up a little? My arm’s getting tired.”

Riku’s laughter felt like they were punching their way out of his chest again, and his joy overflowed from his heart and some spilled from his eyes. He curled his hand around Sora’s, and took the button from him.

“You idiot.” he laughed, and hugged Sora close. Around them, their mothers and Kairi were clapping, and when they pulled apart, Sora laughed, wiping at his eyes too.

Mickey suddenly tapped their shoulders, and Sora beamed at him.

“Thanks, I guess.” He said, and looked at Riku. “C’mon, one more pic, for memories’ sake?”

Riku sniffled, still unable to stop, and nodded.

“S-sure.”

* * *

“Oh, hold on, I gotta pee.”

“Real elegant, Sora.” Riku drawled, but he nodded, taking Sora’s bag from him with a huff, and Sora grinned at him, pecking his lips quickly before the young man hurried away.

It was their fifth anniversary as a couple, and the first time they had been able to go to Disneyland in ages. Riku was busy with work, and Sora had work in the park almost every holiday Riku could get. It was even a miracle their schedules synced up like this, but Riku was glad that it happened.

Now comfortably living together in an apartment in the main island of Destiny Islands, he really couldn’t think of a better way to spend his life with Sora. The deal was much sweeter, though, considering the fact his boyfriend worked at his most favourite place in the world.

Standing there, at his usual spot with Sora and Kairi to watch the parades, Riku couldn’t help but smile as he watched the streets began to clear out, park staff setting up the guardrails they always did when the parade was about to begin. Riku nodded at some familiar faces, waving at others who waved at him first, and stood back as the rail was set up—

Everywhere, oddly, except the space in front of him.

Riku made a move to ask the staff about it, but they had already moved on, leaving Riku there, standing awkwardly between the guardrails. He looked at some other families already gathering near the rails, but no one made a comment on anything out of the ordinary.

He knew his cheeks were warm from embarrassment, but there was nothing much else he could do but stand there and wait.

“ _The Paopu Parade is about to start in five minutes. For your safety, please stay behind the barriers set up by park staff. Thank you._ ”

Riku jolted, and he looked at his watch. “Sora…” he frowned. For a bathroom break, he sure took his time, he thought bitterly, and looked around for his boyfriend.

He couldn’t see a single spike in the sea of people, and Riku frowned.

“Where could he be?” He murmured, but music suddenly began to play on the speakers overhead. Riku frowned deeply, crossing his arms as he tried to look for Sora some more.

Thankfully, his height let him see over most heads in the crowd, but he still couldn’t see him.

The crowd began to titter excitedly, and Riku let out an exasperated sigh.

“So much for watching the parade together…” He muttered, and he turned to look down the length of the main street to see the mascots start heading down the street. Not even his annoyance could stop the smile that crossed his face when he saw Mickey leading the parade.

The mascot was waving to people in the crowd, and soon, Riku’s mood was lifted again especially when Mickey came closer, and closer, until—

“Huh?”

Riku blinked, when Mickey stopped in front of him, holding his hand out to him. Dazedly, he held Mickey’s hand, and let the mascot lead him into the middle of the street.

“M-Mickey?” Riku felt his cheeks on fire again, and all he wanted was to melt into the ground when Mickey held both his hands. “W-what’s going on?” He asked, and the mouse tugged on his hands cheerfully, pulling him along to walk with him along with the rest of the parade. Riku laughed nervously and meekly walked alongside him, but soon, he was walking hand in hand with Mickey Mouse, waving at the people they passed by.

Oh, he’d dreamed of this, he had to admit. He’d dreamed of walking down the street with the parade behind him, hand in hand with Mickey until they reached the Castle of Dreams, and he’d be the one leading the whole thing. It was something he always thought of as a child, and now that it was actually _real,_ Riku didn’t know what he did to deserve this.

“If only Sora could see this.” Riku said warmly, and Mickey cocked his head at him. Riku scratched his cheek nervously, and shrugged. “It’s just… I’d been dreaming of this. Even as a kid, I’ve always wanted to walk this parade with you. I just wished that Sora was here to see it too.”

Mickey squeezed his hands, and Riku could only smile back.

“It’s okay. I’m really happy right now, and if this was Sora’s doing, then I guess I’m not complaining.” He said warmly.

Riku finished the parade by helping Mickey turn on a large paopu-shaped lantern right in front of the castle, much to the cheers and applause of the crowd around them. Riku was smiling so hard his cheeks hurt, and when Mickey squished them between his large gloves, Riku laughed as he let Mickey massage them. As the crowd dispersed around them, Riku calmed down, and he smiled at Mickey as the mascot held his hands again.

“Thank you so much, Mickey.” He said, “This really made me so happy,” he deflated slightly, and tucked a lock of his hair behind his ear. “The only thing that could make this even better was if Sora was around to see me.”

Mickey cocked his head at him, and Riku sighed.

“I’m sure you know him—he’s an employee here too? Brown, spiky hair, big blue eyes and that stupid grin he’s always wearing?” He smiled fondly. “He’s my boyfriend. He ran off to go use the bathroom before the parade, but I guess by now he’d already lost track of me. I should probably—Mickey?”

He cut himself off in a gasp of alarm when Mickey took his hands again, and his heart shot to his throat when Mickey suddenly got down on one knee.

His heart shot to his throat.

“Mickey!”

Dimly, he heard a child go, ‘Mommy, Mickey’s gonna marry the big bro!’, and realisation settled in Riku’s blood, turning it to ice.

“Wait—is this—”

Mickey reached up to pull off his mask, and Sora grinned up at him when it came off.

Riku backed away from him, slapping his hands over his mouth in shock as Sora rooted around his suit to pull out a box, laughing. His cheeks were flushed red from both exertion from being in the suit and embarrassment, and he opened it to reveal a simple ring with a teal-coloured gemstone on it.

“Hey, Riku.” He greeted, and Riku let out an incredulous laugh.

“Hey, Sora.” he replied, and tried not to notice the way his voice trembled with emotion.

“I know I’m not your Michael James Mouse,” he said, and Riku laughed again, shaking his head as Sora’s grin widened, “Well, I _sorta_ am, what with the suit and stuff—”

“Just ask the stupid question, Sora.” Riku couldn’t stop smiling— _wouldn’t_ stop smiling. Sora laughed, and nodded.

“Jeez, I was getting there.” He stuck his tongue out at Riku, but his eyes were shining with the same emotion that was pushing tears to well at the corners of Riku’s eyes. Sora took a deep breath, and tried again. “Riku, I know you’ll always love Mickey the best—”

“I won’t, and you know that better than anyone.” Riku retorted, and Sora grinned.

“ _Getting there,_ ” he said again, and continued. “But maybe with this arrangement, you can change your mind?” He held up the ring again. “Marry me, Riku?”

Riku cupped Sora’s sweaty face in his hands, and kissed him, hard. Sora laughed into their kiss, and got up to kiss him back, wrapping his arms around the back of Riku’s neck as they kissed for a long time, before parting, pressing their foreheads together with a content sigh.

“Well?” Sora asked, “What do you say, _a-hah?_ ” He laughed with a Mickey voice, and Riku laughed, knocking their foreheads together lightly before he pulled away to let Sora take his hand.

“Of course, you idiot.” He said warmly, and Sora beamed at him. “And I told you, didn’t I?”

Sora paused in the middle of putting the ring on Riku’s finger, and cocked his head at him.

Riku chuckled, and shook his head fondly. “I may like Mickey a whole lot, but that doesn’t mean he’s the number _one_ in my life.”

He met Sora halfway, slipping the ring onto his finger the rest of the way, and kissed Sora again.

“You are, Sora,” he murmured against Sora’s lips, “But…”

“But?” Sora hummed.

“Mickey’s up there, too.” He grinned, and Sora burst out laughing.

**Author's Note:**

> jesus christ the tweet won't embed, anyway, on a scale of 1 to 10 how badly did hte "marry me, riku" like fuck you up today


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